What makes the MINI Countryman the perfect family car?

The perfect choice for families, the new MINI Countryman is the biggest MINI yet, offering plenty of space for growing kids

How do you define the vital qualities that make a car perfect not just for you and your children but practical all year round too; for weekend jaunts, school runs, shopping expeditions and adventures away from home?

Nobody was sure until the launch of the new MINI Countryman, designed from the wheels up to answer this very challenge.

Starting with a clean sheet of paper, the designers created the biggest MINI so far ‒ longer and wider than its predecessor, making plenty of room for a host of extra functions and features that make life in the family fast lane so much easier.

There’s more legroom than before and more room in the boot for life’s essentials too

The Countryman’s most obvious new attributes are its rugged good looks. It’s under the handsome new skin, however, that the biggest improvements have been made, making the new five-seater Countryman a genuine, practical small SUV.

And nowhere does it score more highly than on interior space. With comfortable seating up front and generous seating in the back for three, there’s more legroom than before and more room in the boot for life’s essentials too.

Not only is the cavernous 450-litre boot genuinely practical, there’s ingenious new kit on the options list that allows parents to slide the rear seat forwards or backwards to maximise legroom for growing teens or to make room for all the holiday luggage.

Safety and reliability

Safety was a vital cornerstone of the designers’ brief too, as a glance at the equipment list reveals.

There are no fewer than eight airbags, anti-lock braking (ABS) with Cornering Brake Control (CBC), Dynamic Stability Control (DSC), Dynamic Traction Control, Tyre Pressure Warning System, Electronic Brake Force Distribution (EBD) and child seat ISOFIX fittings, all as standard. As is the cutting-edge collision-warning system, with autonomous braking at city speeds.

Dashing looks: the new MINI Countryman is safe, stylish and versatile

And all packaged in one of the most surefooted, long-legged, reliable, best-handling and fun-to-drive MINIs yet.

Versatility scored highly on the designers’ agenda too. Which is why the comfortable rear seat can be folded flat, in sections or in its entirety, to maximise the already generous load space, while the stylish, standard roof rails can be used in conjunction with the official, highly versatile MINI roof rack.

For active lifestyles

Another ingenious touch includes the optional Easy Opener for the boot – allowing parents to open the tailgate with just a wave of the foot when their hands are full of family paraphernalia.

And that’s the point about the new Countryman; it’s the perfect companion for families who, when they tire of life in town or city, want to load up, strap on a mountain bike or two, canoe or surfboard and get off the beaten track for a taste of high adventure.

Families with a passion for exploring the great outdoors will value the MINI Countryman’s innovative go-anywhere ALL4 four-wheel-drive option too, as it gives extra confidence on snow, gravel and mud ‒ not to mention out-of-the-way country tracks, sandy beach carparks and slippery, grassy campsites.

Because life in the MINI Countryman is all about adventure, with a massive dash of practicality.

Take a different path

These Telegraph stories, brought to you by MINI, are about family adventures, individuality and a life full of experience.

There’s now a family of five MINIs to choose from, including a brand new MINI Countryman with more space, more versatility, more standard features and more appetite for life.